Who’s at risk?

Testicular cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among young Irish men aged 15-34.

Men with undescended testes at birth, or who have a family history, like a father or brother who has had testicular cancer, are at an increased risk. And if you’ve had testicular cancer before, there’s also a heightened risk it could return.

The facts about testicular cancer

Testicles are responsible for the production of male hormones (mostly testosterone) and sperm. Testicular cancer starts as an abnormal growth or tumour that develops in one or both testicles. There are several types of testicular cancer, but the most common is the germ cell tumour.

If you've been diagnosed with testicular cancer

The most important step is to talk to your doctor about treatment choices. You may consider getting a second or third doctor’s opinion.

Treatment options

Testicular cancer is a highly treatable cancer and can be effectively treated, and often cured, if diagnosed and treated early. Advanced testicular cancer can also be cured with treatment including:

Orchiectomy (surgical removal of the affected testis), done under general anesthetic

Chemotherapy or radiotherapy, often prescribed after surgery to treat any remaining cancer cells that may have spread to other parts of the body, such as lymph nodes

Side effects

Testicular cancer and the removal of one testicle should not alter your ability to have sex or have children. The effect on fertility following removal of one of the testicles is minimal as a single testicle produces such large numbers of sperm. Men with testicular cancer should talk to their oncologist about sperm banking before commencing chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

If you would like to talk to a cancer nurse about testicular cancer, you can call the Irish Cancer Society on1800 200 700